Lavatory sanitation bodies

ABSTRACT

A body for attachment to the rim of the basin of a toilet bowl, or the like, the body including a trough-shaped body portion having apertured end walls, the trough-shaped body portion forming a compartment holding a quantity of a solid soluble treatment material. One side of said trough-shaped body portion terminates in a flexible bowl-engaging means for diverting flush water into said compartment where it makes direct contact with the solid treatment material, thereby to partly dissolve a portion of the material and to enable said dissolved portion to be carried by the flush water into said basin. The other side of the trough-shaped body portion merges with an apertured shieldforming and mounting portion which hooks around the rim of the toilet bowl.

United States Patent [191 Ancel Oct. 23, 1973 [73] Assignee: Chemtrust Industries Corporation,

Maywood, 111.

22 Filed: July 14,1971

21 Appl. No.: 162,392

[52] US. Cl. 4/231 [51] Int. Cl E03d 9/02 [58] Field 01 Search 4/231 [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,529,309 9/1970 Leavitt et a1 4/231 2,034,619 3/1936 Hoffman 4/231 3,537,112 11/1970 Goodman 4/231 203,186 4/1878 Naulty 4/231 457,659 8/1891 McCartney 4/231 680,179 8/1901 Schoneman 4/231 1,083,561 1/1914 Rising 424/18 1,091,265 3/1914 Wohlander. 4/231 1,136,268 4/1915 Reamer 4/231 2,214,798 9/1940 Reikosky 4/231 Primary ExaminerWilliam 1. Price Assistant Examiner-Donald B. Massenberg Attorney-Sidney Wallenstein et a1.

[57] ABSTRACT A body for attachment to the rim of the basin of a toilet bowl, or the like, the body including a troughshaped body portion having apertured end walls, the trough-shaped body portion forming a compartment holding a quantity of a solid soluble treatment material. One side of said trough-shaped body portion terminates in a flexible bowl-engaging means for diverting flush water into said compartment where it makes direct contact with the solid treatment material, thereby to partly dissolve a portion of the material and to enable said dissolved portion to be carried by the flush water into said basin. The other side of the trough-shaped body portion merges with an apertured shield-forming and mounting portion which hooks around the rim of the toilet bowl.

4 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures Pmimmwz m 3,766; 576

INVENTOR 55L wwv J. AA/ca ATT'VS.

LAVATORY SANITATION BODIES This invention relates to lavatory units for deodorizing, cleaning and sanitizing toilet bowls, or the like, and represents an improvement over the lavatory unit disclosed in US. Pat-No. 3,529,309.

Toilet bowls and the like, require constant care to prevent the buildup of unsightly deposits, both organic and inorganic in origin, to reduce odors and to keep bacteria growth at minimally safe levels. In an effort to cope with at least some of these problems, products such, for example, as paradichlorobenzene, usually in cake form, have been widely used. Paradichlorobenzene cakes, however, function primarily as odor maskants, and, while in certain instances, other ingredients such as disinfectants are incorporated in the cakes, they provide no cleansing action and afford no protection against buildup of undesirable deposits, stains, and encrustations common to sanitary units of the type here under consideration. The lavatory sanitation unit of said US. Pat. No. 3,529,309 provides continuous and complete protection for toilet bowls, elevated urinals and the like, against these problems without the necessity for daily care by maintenance personnel. It includes a holder carrying a solid deodorizing, cleaning and sanitizing material (to be sometimes referred to as a treatment material), the holder being positioned in a toilet bowl, elevated urinal, or the like, so as to enable flush water to come directly into contact with at least a portion of the material carried therein to dissolve limited amounts thereof each time the toilet or urinal is flushed. The holder most advantageously has a portion engaging the rim of the toilet bowl or urinal and is selfadjusting so that it automatically adapts to different shaped toilet bowl or urinal surfaces. It is also preferably so inexpensively constructed that it is a single use unit which can 'be thrown away after the contents thereof are used up.

The holder of said US. Pat. No. 3,529,309 has a relatively soft plastic or rubbery water-deflecting lip or blade engageable with the inner surface of the toilet bowl or urinal to divert a portion of the flush water into direct contact with the solid treatment material carried thereby. The lip or blade conforms to the inner curved wall of the toilet bowl or urinal, thereby to enable the holder to be used in connection with a wide variety of differently shaped toilet bowls or uninals. An openended trough-like portion is provided for securely retainingthe solid mass of treatment material therein which is, in the preferred form thereof, poured in a liquid state into temporarily same with mold-forming end walls termporarily closing off the open ends of the trough-like portion. The material subsequently hardens in the holder. One longitudinal margin of the troughlike portion terminates in a lip and the other longitudinal margin terminates in a hook-shaped forming portion which hooks over the rim of the toilet bowl or urinal. In use, the trough-likeportion of the holder is positioned in relation to the flush water channel and its associated openings of a toilet bowl or urinal in a manner to enable a portion of the flush water to be directed intocontact with the solid mass of treatment material held thereby by the bowl conforming lip or blade. Thus, with each flushing of the bowl, a portion of the solid treatment material will be dissolved thereby releasing the active ingredients into the bowl.

The solid mass of treatment material in the troughlike portion of the holder may become softened by the moisture and water to a point where it becomes a slightly flowable mass, which can flow out the open ends of the trough-like portion of the holder. Also, the hook-shaped clamp-forming portion of the holder shields the mass of treatment material from view, making it sometimes difficult for the user to know when the supply of treatment material is at such a low level that it should be replaced with a new unit.

The present invention represents an improvement over the holder disclosed in the aforesaid patent by providing the trough-like portion of the holder with retaining end walls in which are limited sized perforations which permit only the highly flowable water readily to drain from the holder. Also, the hooked-shape portion of the holder which previously shielded from view the supply of treatment material is perforated so that the user can view the treatment material through the perforations to determine the quantity of treatment material remaining in the holder.

The above features and advantages of the invention will become more apparent upon making reference to the specification, the claims and the drawings wherein:

FIGQl is a view in perspective of an embodiment of a lavatory body of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional view through a toilet bowl rim showing the lavatory body of the invention installed therein;

FIG. 3 is a' view in perspective, partly broken away, showing said embodiment mounted in a toilet bowl;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary view corresponding to the view of FIG. 3 showing details of a portion of said embodiment; and

FIG. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical sectional view showing details of the flexible lip or blade of said embodiment.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the embodiment of the lavatory sanitizing body there illustrated is mounted in operative position on a conventional commode. It should be understood that the lavatory body can also be similarly mounted on an elevated type urinal having a similar rim. The commode comprises a molded or cast bowl having a basin 12, The bowl 10 is provided with a-pedestal 14 which rests on a supporting surface such as a floor to which the pedestal is affixed by screws or bolts. The top of the bowl is formed into a rim 16, the walls of which define a flush water channel 18 desirably extending completely around the bowl. The channel 18 has a plurality of water distributing openings or holes 20 which admit water to the basin 12. A seat 22 is hingeably secured to the bowl 10 at the rim 16 thereof.

The lavatory body consists of a holder 28 which essentially comprises an upper, bowl rim engaging, resilient portion 30, a lower, hook-shaped, upper, clamping, trough-like, solid treatment material supporting portion 32, and a flexible basin wall conforming lip or edge portion 34. The upper and lower portions 30 and panel 40 which, in turn, is joined to the lower margin of an upwardly extending, relatively wide panel 42. The panel 42 is joined along its upper margin to a substantially horizontal, toilet bowl rim-engaging panel 44. The panel 44, in turn, is joined to a relatively large, downwardly and outwardly extending panel 46, the lower edge 48 of which is formed into a rounded, openended channel 50 which is open along its entire length. The panel 46 has narrow vertically elongated viewing slots 46a.

The trough-like lower portion 32 of the holder 28 comprises generally upwardly and outwardly extending walls 52 and 54 joined at their lower margins to a relatively narrow bottom wall 56. The upper edge of the wall 52 has a bead 58 formed thereon which is received in the open channel 50 in the lower edge 48 of the panel 46 and is heat sealed therein. The upper edge 60 of the wall 54 is thickened, and is provided with substantially rectangularly shaped channel 62. The flexible lip portion 34 of the holder 28 advantageously is fabricated of a relatively soft, rubbery or plastic material such as vinyl plastic, or the like, and is provided with an elongated narrow, rectangularly shaped extension 64 which is snugly frictionally engaged in the channel 62 at the upper edge 60 of the wall 54. Joined to the inner margin of the extension 64 is a wedge-shaped blade 66, the highly flexible free edge 68 of which engages and conforms to the wall of the basin 12 of the commode. The flexible character of the blade 66 enables the holder to be used on commodes having basin walls of widely varying curvature. Apart from this function, the blade 66 acts also to divert flush water passing through openings 20 of the channel 18 onto the exposed surfaces of a mass of solid treatment material 70 filling the compartment 71 formed by the trough-like portion 32.

The treatment material 70 may be granular or particulate in character. However, in accordance with the preferred aspects of the present invention, the material 70 advantageously is a solid, unitary mass which has been poured directly into the lower, trough-like portion 32 of the holder. The trough-like portion 32 has end walls 73-73 with openings 73a therein positioned at different elevations of the end walls 73-73. The end walls 73-73 retain the main body of the treatment material in the compartment 71 even when it becomes a softened, slightly flowable mass, and the openings 73a provide means for allowing the water and treatment material dissolved therein to drain from the compartment 7 1 as the mass of treatment material 70 slowly dissolves to lower the elevation of the remaining upper surface thereof. The viewing slots 46a make the upper surface of the treatment material visible so that the user can determine whether a new lavatory body is needed. in the embodiment shown, the solid molded mass of treatment material 70 is also retained in the compartment 71 by means of an upwardly extending, arrowshaped elongated projection 72 joined to the lower wall 56 of the trough-like portion 32. The projection 72,'of course, is only exemplary of any of various means for anchoring the mass of material 70 in position. Thus, for 7 example, inwardly extending projections joined to the walls 52 and 54 could serve a like purpose.

The treatment material 70 may comprise any of the known solid sanitizing materials, including paradichlorobenzene cakes. However, in accordance with a particularly preferred embodiment of the holder, the material most advantageously is formed of a solid material containing as its essential active ingredients (a) one or more synthetic detergents of the nonionic, cationic or amphoteric type, or mixtures thereof, and (b) one or more acidic agents. Such a material can be readily poured and solidified in the portion 32, and will provide longlasting protection for the commode against the problems previously outlined as being common to such sanitary units.

When the holder 28 is fabricated, the edge 38 of the panel 36 of the upper portion 30 of the holder is contiguous to the blade 66 at the end of the trough-like portion 32 of the holder. To mount the holder 28 on the rim 16 of the toilet bowl 10, the panel 42 is pulled outwardly to separate the same from the edge 66, and the upper portion of the holder is hooked over the rim of the toilet bowl, as best shown in FIG. 2. The edge 38 of the panel 36 preferably engages under the projecting portion of the rim l6, and the panel 44 preferably fits upon the upper surface of the rim l6 and preferably bends snugly around the edges of the rim, as shown. in such case, the panel 46 is placed under a tension which forces the trough-like portion 32 of the holder against the inner surface of the toilet bowl 10, thereby forcing the blade 66 tightly against this inner surface to form a seal therewith. The lip portion 34 and the lower, solid material supporting portion 32 of the holder will be positioned below the openings 20 of the flush water channel 18. With each use of the commode, flush water passing through the openings 20 adjacent the holder 28 will be diverted by the lip portion 34 onto exposed surfaces of the solid material 70. The water will dissolve a portion of the material 70 which will then be carried into the basin 12 and circulated therearound.

The nonionic, cationic and amphoteric synthetic detergents having utility in the present invention form a wide group. As stated, the detergents used advantageously are solid at room temperatures and should be soluble, or at least partly soluble, in cold water. Exemplary of nonionic synthetic detergents useful in the formation of the solid treatment materials of this invention are ethylene oxide adducts of straight chain fatty acids, long chain fatty acid alkanolamides, ethylene oxide adducts of long chain fatty acid alkanolamides, fatty acid dialkyl amine oxides, and the like. In addition, commercially available proprietary products such as those sold under the trademarks Detergent MXP, a built polyoxyethylene ester (Monsanto Chemical Co.) and Alrosol C, a fatty alkylolamide condensate (Geigy Industrial Chemical Co.), can be used. Exemplary of cationic synthetic detergents that can be employed are fatty acid heterocyclic tertiary amine salts, quaternary ammoniom derivatives of long chain fatty acid substituted imidazolines, and the like. Proprietary products such as the one sold under the trademark vantoc DP". a built quaternary ammonium compound plus a nonionic detergent (lmperial Chemical Industries) also can be used.

Examples of amphoteric synthetic detergents having utility in the practice of the preferred form of this invention are the sodium salts of higher fatty acid amine propianates such as disodium N-lauryl betaiminodiproponate, the disodium salt of N-tallow betaamino dipropionate, the sodium salt of N-coco betaamino propionate, and the like. Of the numberous nonionic synthetic detergents having utility for the purposes of the preferred form of the invention, coconut oil fatty acid alkanolamides, particularly coconut oil fatty acid or lauric or myristic acid amides of monoethanolamine are preferred. f the cationic synthetic detergent, long chain fatty acid, especially C,.,C fatty acid, quaternary imidazolinates are preferable. Of the amphotoric synthetic detergents, the product sold under the trademark Deriphat 151 (General Mills, Inc.) a sodium salt of N-coco beta-amino proprionate, is preferred. The synthetic detergents act not only as cleaning and lime soap dispersing agents, but especially in the case of the cationic detergents, also function as bactericidal and/or bacteriostatic agents when released by the flush water. In addition, the synthetic detergents, in certain instances, provide an abrasive or scrubbing action in the flush water due to the fact that not all of the detergent dislodged in the flushing action goes into solution. The non-dissolved crystals of the detergent thus serve as minute scrubbers or abraders as they are propelled around the sanitary unit by the flush water.

The acidic agents utilized in the solid material 70 of the preferred form of this invention also may be selected from a wide group. Included in this group are mineral acids such as phosphoric acids, notably orthophosphoric acid, hydrochloric acid, boric acid, orthoboric acid, perchloric acid, acetic acid, cresotinic acid, and the like; and acid-forming salts such as monosodium phosphate, sodium bisulfate, and the like, and compatible mixtures thereof. 0f the aforementioned acidic agents, orthophosphoric acid, or a phosphoric acid-producing salt such as monosodium phosphate, and citric acid provide especially effective solid sanitizing. materials. Orthophosphoric acid, for example, readily removes hard water seale, adhering organic matter, and dissolves uric acid crystal deposits. In addition, it acts as a disinfectant and a deodorizer. Citric acid, on the other hand, is an excellent sequestering and chelating agent, and acts to combine with iron, calcium, magnesium, and other metal ionspresents in the flush water to form soluble salts thereby preventing buildup of mineral salt deposits in the sanitary unit and the drain conduits associated with it. Various of the acids also exhibit bactericidal and/or bacteriostatic effects which. are helpful in eliminating malodors in and around the sanitary unit.

The proportions of synthetic detergent and acidic agent utilized in forming the solid material 70 of the preferred form of the invention are variable. The generally optimum results however, are attained with ratios, basis weight, of the synthetic detergent to 'the acidic agent of the order of about I to about 100 of the synthetic detergent to about 1 of the acidic agent.

As indicated above, the solid material 70 of the preferred form of the present invention may incorporate ingredients which serve to enhance, augment and complement the essential active ingredients thereof. To this end, germicidal and/or bacterio static agents such as benzyl dimethyl tetradecyl ammonium chloride and the tributyltinchloride complex of an ethoxylated abietylamine condensate, chelating agents exemplified by ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid, perfumes and coloring agents may be added to the basid formulation. Generally speaking, such additive will usually comprise only a minor proportion, usually less than 5 percent, by weight, of the solid material.

While, as stated, the synthetic detergents employed provide some scrubbing or abrasive action in the flush water, this action can be substantially increased by replacing a portion of one or both of the essential ingredients of the solid material with one or more solid inert substances exemplary of which are volcanic ash, diatomaceous earth, clays, asbestos, and the like. These substances, in additions to providing excellent scrubbing or abrading action, serve also to bind the solid material 70 into a solid, integrated body. In addition, they act as absorbing and/or absorbing agents for foreign matter present in the lavatory body. The quantity of inert substances used in the formulation of the solid sanitizing material is somewhat variable. Generally speaking, the quantitythereof used in lieu of one or both of the. essential ingredients will be below about 50 percent, by weight, of the finished solid sanitizing body, more desirably from about 10 percent to about 20 percent, by weight, thereof.

The following examples are illustrative of the various compositions for the solid material 70, but they are not to be constured in any way as limitative of the full variations thereof since various changes and modifications can be made in the light of the guiding principles and teachings disclosed herein. The quantities recited are in terms of weight percent.

Quaternary derivative of substituted C -C fatty acid imidazoline salt [0 EXAMPLE 6 Citric acid 5 Monosodium phosphate 20 Ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid 5 orthophosphoric acid 5 Coconut oil fatty acid monoethanolamide 35 Nonylphenoxypoly (ethyleneoxy) ethanol IGEPAL CO-990) 5 Quaternary derivative of substituted C C,,

fatty acid imidazoline salt 5 Diatomaceous earth 20 EXAMPLE 7 Monosodium phosphate 6 orthophosphoric acid (85%) 6 Citric acid I Orthoberic acid I 1-hydroxyethyl-2 alkyl (C,,) imidazoline phosphate 0.5 Benzyl dimethyl tetradecyl ammonium chloride 0.2 Tributyltin chloride complex of ethoxylated abietylamine condensate 0.!

lGEPAL C-990 85.2

EXAMPLE 8 Sodium salt of N-coco beta-amine Propionate (Deriphat 151) 30 Monosodium phosphate 70 It should be understood that various modifications may be made in the illustrative embodiment of the present invention described above without deviating from the broader aspects of the invention.

I claim:

1. A lavatory body for use in a basin of a toilet bowl, elevated urinal, or the like, said body comprising an upper rim-engaging portion shaped to engage with the rim of said basin and a lower apertured treatment material holding portion having side walls on all sides thereof defining the margins of a compartment containing a quantity of solid soluble treatment material which was molded in situ therein and which can become a softened, slightly flowable mass, said lavatory body having a basin-engaging lip means for engaging the basin to divert flush water into said compartment where it makes direct contact with the solid treatment material thereby to partly dissolve a portion of the material and to enable said dissolved portion to be carried by the flush water into said basin, at least one of said side walls having drain openings occupying various elevations thereof and being sufficiently large to permit water and dissolved treatment material to drain into the basin but so small as to prevent the softened treatment material from passing therethrough.

2. The lavatory body of claim 1 wherein said treatment material holding portion is open at the top, and said upper rim-engaging portion is hook-shaped and includes a wall section which overlies the open top of said treatment material holding portion and is apertured so the treatment material remaining in said compartment can be viewed to determine the amount of treatment material, if any, remaining therein.

3. A lavatory body for use in a basin of a toilet bowl, elevated urinal, or the like, said body comprising a holder having an upper hook-shaped rim-engaging portion shaped to hook over the rim of said basin and a lower compartment-forming, open-top, trough-like portion having a compartment containing a quantity of solid soluble treatment material which was molded in situ therein and can become a softened, slightly flowable mass, said trough-like portion having a free edge which constitutes a basin-engaging lip means for engaging the basin to divert flush water into said compartment where it makes direct contact with the solid treatment material thereby to partly dissolve a portion of the material and to enable said dissolved portion to be carried by the flush water into said basin, and end walls for confining a softened mass of said solid treatment material in said compartment, the end walls having drain openings occupying various elevations thereof and being sufficiently large to permit water and dissolved treatment material to drain into the basin but so small as to prevent the softened treatment material from passing therethrough.

4. The lavatory body of claim 3 wherein said troughlike portion has spaced main side walls, one of which terminates at the top thereof in said basin-engaging lip means and the other of which joins an upwardly extending section of said upper rim-engaging portion of the holder which section overlies and covers the open top of the trough-like portion and has perforations through which the treatment material remaining in said compartment can be viewed to determine the amount of treatment material, if any, remaining therein. 

1. A lavatory body for use in a basin of a toilet bowl, elevated urinal, or the like, said body comprising an upper rim-engaging portion shaped to engage with the rim of said basin and a lower apertured treatment material holding portion having side walls on all sides thereof defining the margins of a compartment containing a quantity of solid soluble treatment material which was molded in situ therein and which can become a softened, slightly flowable mass, said lavatory body having a basinengaging lip means for engaging the basin to divert flush water into said compartment where it makes direct contact with the solid treatment material thereby to partly dissolve a portion of the material and to enable said dissolved portion to be carried by the flush water into said basin, at least one of said side walls having drain openings occupying various elevations thereof and being sufficiently large to permit water and dissolved treatment material to drain into the basin but so small as to prevent the softened treatment material from passing therethrough.
 2. The lavatory body of claim 1 wherein said treatment material holding portion is open at the top, and said upper rim-engaging portion is hook-shaped and includes a wall section which overlies the open top of said treatment material holding portion and is apertured so the treatment material remaining in said compartment can be viewed to determine the amount of treatment material, if any, remaining therein.
 3. A lavatory body for use in a basin of a toilet bowl, elevated urinal, or the like, said body comprising a holder having an upper hook-shaped rim-engaging portion shaped to hook over the rim of said basin and a lower compartment-forming, open-top, trough-like portion having a compartment containing a quantity of solid soluble treatment material which was molded in situ therein and can become a softened, slightly flowable mass, said trough-like portion having a free edge which constitutes a basin-engaging lip means for engaging the basin to divert flush water into said compartment where it makes direct contact with the solid treatment material thereby to partly dissolve a portion of the material and to enable said dissolved portion to be carried by the flush water into said basin, and end walls for confining a softened mass of said solid treatment material in said compartment, the end walls having drain openings occupying various elevations thereof and being sufficiently large to permit water and dissolved treatment material to drain into the basin but so small as to prevent the softened treatment material from passing therethrough.
 4. The lavatory body of claim 3 wherein said trough-like portion has spaced main side walls, one of which terminates at the top thereof in said basin-engaging lip means and the other of which joins an upwardly extending section of said upper rim-engaging portion of the holder which section overlies and covers the open top of the trough-like portion and has perforations through which the treatment material remaining in said compartment can be viewed to determine the amount of treatment material, if any, remaining therein. 